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Why Consider Blogging?
I thought long and hard before I made the commitment to blog. Like you, I don’t need another thing to fill my time. After praying about it, I decided blogging should be an important part of our ministry. Here are a few reasons why you might consider blogging:
- You can mentor other leaders. Mentoring pastors is the reason for this blog. Instead of talking to one pastor at a time, the blog enables Bobby and me to talk to thousands.
- You can communicate with your church. This is not my goal, but I know tons of pastors who do this effectively. Two of my friends locally who do this well are Clark Mitchell and Herbert Cooper.
- You can journal what God is showing you. Many people could benefit from what God is doing in your life. A blog is a good outlet for sharing.
- You can build new friendships. Many of you have become friends as a result of our daily blogging interaction.
- You can minister to people. Just as God might use your sermon, God can use your written words.
- You can share Christ with people who stumble across your blog.
- Your ideas can travel. Not only can you speak to your primary audience, but others may pick up on what you’re saying. They might also link to you, which can help spread your message.
Can those of you who are bloggers tell us why you blog? If you’re considering blogging, feel free to ask questions of our blogging community.
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Craig, I agree with you in that mentoring, relationship-building, ministering, etc. can take place through blogging. I’ve recently begun pastoring, and I have been exposed to so many ideas, uplifted by great stories and challenged to go to the next level so many times through blogs, including yours.
Thanks for taking time out to do this. You guys at lifechurch.tv rock!
I started to connect with my student when I was a Next Gen pastor. Then I did a You Tube Interview with Shiley Phelps-Roper & all of these atheists & Mormons started posting. I can’t explain it but I have @ least 10 regular atheists who correspond with me & other believers who come to my site. I even had lunch with Askanatheist.org when I went to Catalyst.
I write my posts usually about struggles I’ve had with legalism, articles about hypocrisy or atheism the night before. But I asked my question yesterday out of personal experience.
I first prayed about it and got the confirmation. Blogging allows me to journal, share, express, challenge, question, pray, teach, grow, laugh and most importantly verbalize how God is living, moving, and challenging his believers today in a REAL way. I learn so much from others and I share what I experience as well. “Iron sharpens Iron.” Thank you for your commitment to this site…I personally have received SO much in just a short time.
Craig and Bobby,
First of all, thank you guys for blogging!
Secondly, I blog for four reasons:
1) It allows me to think out loud with other people. I find that often my thoughts get better when processed through the grid of other people’s thoughts.
2) It is a place for me to store what I’m thinking allowing me to look back and see the evolution of a thought.
3) It allows me to interact with and meet new friends.
4) It allows me to share what I’m learning.
Thanks for taking us back to the basics.
Paul
My blog has a specific target audience and my purpose is to be an enouragment to other home educating moms. (I’ve got a few years of experience! ; )
Blogging takes a lot of time, but it is something that is growing and stretching me. It also makes me be very transparent—and I think that is a good thing. I’m learning a lot about myself.
It’s a great feeling when you know something you’ve been through helps someone else! And I’ve enjoyed “meeting” new friends.
Thanks for sharing.
Blogging to me has two distinct platforms as a pastor.
1. It opens up a dialogical component to the church that is non-existant on sundays. Sunday is ultimately a monologue and this gives people a certain feeling of distance from leadership. Blogging is an effective way to bridge that gap and allow information to flow 2 ways.
2. It allows for vision casting. FDR used to make strategic statements in his fireside chats and then check the polls for people’s reactions. He wasn’t enslaved to the polling but it was a feedback loop on how his vision was being incorporated [or not] into the american culture. I try to do this as well with polls and other catalysts.
3. As an aside. My people have found it fun to invite thier unchurched friends into the dialogue…as a result about 1/3 of my top-10 list of unchurched people I am interested in seeing come to Christ has come from the blog being forwarded to non-christians.
For me the blog extends my leadership impact; closes the gap with my peole; and extends my reach to the unchurched. It also helps me to model being and helping create a learning organization/organism
I have two spiritual gifts … prophecy, and evangelism…
Blogging allows me to exercise those gifts…and build up the body of Christ…
I also blog for all the other reasons mentioned…
I am also getting to know Kevin Bussey online through his blog, and am really encouraged by him.
My number one reason for blogging is this… God uses them…
*To get a lot of the junk that’s in my head onto paper, such as: thoughts, leadership principles, challenges, quotes, interesting concepts, new reads, life lessons, God’s word, God moments….
*Relationships and community
*Most importantly it challenges me to stay fresh, to look at new thoughts, life lessons and leadership principles that I experience on a daily basis!
I really began blogging as a daily journal. I liked the thought of blogging better than writing in a journal. Now my fingers just cramp instead of my entire hand!
But I have continued blogging because I have seen how transparency in the Church is often anything but. I have seen people share their hearts, their struggles, their success’, and even their failures. That has encouraged me to know, I am not alone!
I blog to share what God is doing in my life and how He has led me through past struggles. I have a passion to help others live past the past, which means NOT making the same mistakes I have made.
I blog for four reasons:
1) to better the teaching experience - I can write early in the week about what’s planned for Sunday, and afterward,I can address those “I should have said…” moments.
2) to enhance church communication - If someone asks me a question, there are probably others who were wondering the same thing.
3) to be transparent - Blogging allows me to share personal and family events (getaways or birthday outings), giving my congregation the opportunity to get to know me better.
4) as a spiritual discipline akin to journaling - I have learned, though, that sorting out my thoughts takes on a whole new twist when others are reading along.
I began blogging to keep a journal of important happenings in my life. Even at 24, I feel like I forget too much too often. It then evolved into including ministry thoughts and challenges to my friends in ministry. I also drop some bigger names and quotes every now and again not to boost my stats, but to get out the names of other churches and pastors who are influencing me to folks that might not come across a LifeChurch.tv and such in a normal day on the east coast.
On some days, I blog to just share what I’m thinking and going through. On other days, I blog to teach. Still other days, I just want to share something I learned.
for me, blogging is my way to share things….honestly, it is my coping mechanism.
i think that it can be a place where i share what the Lord is teaching me.
it would be hard for me to nail down why exactly i blog…it is my outlet.
For myself, I knew going in that my blog was probably not going to get a lot of readers. I don’t have a big church. I don’t have any books published. I’m not on a speaking tour. When nobody knows who you are, it’s hard to get readers for your blog.
So while I did have the same reasons you listed above, I knew that (at least initially) these reasons were just my hopes.
So I got into blogging for two other resons as well. First, I want to write, and many writers say the best way to learn to write is to write–LOTS. I figured blogging was one way to develop a discipline of writing. It would help me learn my style. If one of my blog posts got a lot of readers, it may help me learn how to engage people.
The second reason I blog is related to something I read years ago (I think in Augustine). I find that I learn best “with a pen in my hand.” I learn best by writing. Writing helps me organize my thoughts, think through issues, and arrange my brain. Blogging then becomes a sort of personal journal to help get my thoughts organized. If someone actually reads what I wrote, that’s just a bonus.
My church doesn’t allow me to preach, so my blog is outlet for all the ideas I want to share with other Christians.
Although, after reading what I want to share, my church is probably even less likely to allow me entry to the pulpit…
I agree, there are some tremendous opportunities via blogging. When I set up my blog(careerwaymark.com), which focuses on career development/improvement. I decided to link to Lifechurch in the hope that for those that may stumble across my blog, may also need to be ministered to. A few people thought it might take away from my blogs focus or make it too religious…puhleeze.
I’m pleased to see that regularly people link to Lifechurch from my site. Sometimes it can be the little things that make a major impact. I hope this small thing can continue to impact others.
I began blogging as a ministry to others. I asked God to help me, that if I could reach just one person who felt hopeless in this world, He could bring them hope through my testimony and thoughts. I have made some wonderful friends. That’s just a bonus.
My blog started as a private journal, but it’s evolved into most of the categories you describe above. I wasn’t really expecting this to happen.
But the negative side is I start to watch my stats. I keep reminding myself that hits do not = importance, and that this is not a popularity contest.
I didn’t really know of the dangers of blogging until I got pretty far into it. But I agree that the benefits make it worth it. As long as people engage in the conversation I think it’s healthy.
I actually started blogging just so that my comment signature would be a pretty hyperlink shade like all the other cool kids. Despite what it may seem like, I have a tendency to be rather opinionated. I also have a tendency to run on a bit, and want to give links to information for others. I’ve found that it keeps my comments in other people’s blogs a bit shorter if I post the excess in my own blog. Also, it gives me the chance to be translucent with you aliens. Seriously, transparency is so overrated. (grin)
I currently blog to help other Christians find the best available stuff on the internet. I guess that would mean I am helping other people to minister to my readers (if that makes sense). I love it when I see people going to top websites (e.g. eSword) from an article I may have written.
i started blogging to share what we were doing with students so that others could take what they thought they could use.
my blog is still that - a journal of one experience in student missions. it’s also become a tool for mentoring and leadership and connecting point for others that we are partnering with.
When you start blogging, how do you get others to read it?
i started blogging because all the students i was working with were doing it (on xanga)…then i remembered how much i love writing so it kind of developed into a place to interact and learn and share…
relationships have probably been key for me - i’ve had the great opportunity to meet people face to face at conferences and stuff (terry foester who commented a few comments above me actually recognized me at a conference he was attending here in dallas - which was really fun and out of the blue!) but the overall theme of why i do it would be relationships.
My main reason for blogging is to communicate with those in my church. I get comments all the time from people telling me that reading my blog helps them feel connected to me and what’s going on in my life (and inside my brain).
I blog for a couple of reasons…
It’s fun and I enjoy writing.
Blogging gives me a place to communicate all the stuff that doesn’t make it into a sermon/teaching event. In many ways, my blog is the overflow of the thinking/praying/studying that goes into sermon prep.
Blogging is also a great way to share resources and ideas.
I do recommend The Blogging Church for those that are pastor’s considering blogging. It is really helpful.
I just started blogging today and Im really excited about the possibilities of opening discussing with my church and with other Christians all around the world. It is still unclear whether blogging in particular and internet relationships in general are as effective as personal discipleship but having the opportunity to hold spiritual discussion with your whole church and loads of other Christians and non-believers as well. Could anyone help teach me how to get people more connected to my new blog?
Amy, I’ve found the best way is to start commenting - either intelligently or outrageously (while being kind) - on other blogs where potential readers already are. Then they’ll naturally link back to your site if your name is highlighted.
Todd, Thanks for helping answer Amy’s question.
She asked how to attract readers. Maybe some of the rest of you might have more advice for her.
Hi, I found Swerve on accident with a Google search. I’m a member at the Tulsa campus, and love that LifeChurch embraces technology. I’m a (former) programmer, so I appreciate what technology can do for us.
The great thing about LifeChurch using technology isn’t the awesome “gee whiz” factor that we get from it (”Look at us! We have an online church!”), but rather that we use it as a tool to facilitate communication. I’ve seen a lot of churches fail at using technology simply because they adopted tech just to be current or “hip”.
Even though LC has some great tech, at heart, they are really a simple church formed of small, accountable groups. That’s what I really love about it (even though I kinda like the lasers, too).
Keep up the good work!
Amy and Jason,
I agree that commenting on other blogs is a great way to get exposure for your blog. But they need to be relevant comments and not spammy (e.g. not “come and see my brilliant blog”).
Also making it search engine friendly has helped me. A great site to look at is called ProBlogger. He is focused on generating income from blogs but the key to making money from blogs is getting more viewers - so a lot of the material on here is really helpful. He is also a Christian and it is a very well written blog.
Patience and good quality posts are also key, it will almost always take time…
Oh yes, and don’t forget to come and see my brilliant blog!
Amy- I blogged today about how to increase your blog traffic. It consists of 10 things that really work.
Amy, I agree with Todd. Start commenting on other blogs, esp ones with a similar theme. You can also reach out to bloggers whose blogs you enjoy. Introduce yourself, ask for feedback on your blog, and ask to be part of their blogroll.
I’ve had some good success using these strategies.
I blog for several reasons:
1) My Creation blog I started to help promote creation-oriented research. There is a great divide between popular-level and academic-level creationism, and I wanted to bridge the gap
2) My technology blog I started so that, as I encounter tech problems and work through them, I have the solutions documented so that Google can pick them up so that others having the same problems can find them easily.
3) In general, I have a lot of ideas, and blogging gives me a nice spot to test them out, and archive them so I don’t forget them.
Amy –
It depends on the audience size you are looking for. However, I’ve found that the main thing is to have good, insightful content that is simply unavailable elsewhere.
Also, you might become part of a blogging community. For instance, I’m part of the Methodist Blogroll which both (a) gets me on a lot of link lists on other sites, and (b) I get my blog summarized in the weekly roundup.
Each blogging community kind of has its own self-promotion methods, so look around and find out. A lot of it depends on the topic, the desired size of the audience, and why you would want them to read it.
I should just say that I am so pleased with Swerve. I have learned so much since I started subscribing and reading the blog. But back to the question at hand…
I blog to share what God has so gracioulsy shared with me. I alos find it is a very important tool to reach those who might otherwise never ever ever step into a church or into our church, either because they are afraid of what people might say (judging), or because they dont live in the same city, the reasons are endless.
I think it is crucial to be as transparent as possible in our blog, otherwise you end not being relevant. I find that people really do care and want to know what is going on in our heads. As a matter of fact my wife even said to me that she loves reading it because she get an even better idea of what is going on inside my head.
I blog for discipline. It keeps me accountable to journaling, vision casting and implementation of new processes. I also use it as a connection point for leaders and friends.
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